Is it weird writing about Barcelona day trip while listening to “Waka Waka” song? Well, that’s me, haha… I just can’t wait for my upcoming trip! 😁✨
Anyway, about the title of this week’s blog post. It was a great day for me because I felt so accomplished experiencing many things in one day.
On my last day on tour, I had one whole free day to explore Barcelona. I maximised the opportunity to visit La Sagrada Familia, The Picasso Museum, Parc Güell, and La Rambla (revisitted).
To end the day, I met the rest of the tour group in La Rambla then headed to a bar. You can imagine how tired I was! However, I didn’t rush except when I was in the Picasso Museum…
Luckily, the tour group had a 2-hour walking city tour the day before, so by the time I explored the city myself, I roughly knew which direction to go…
Oh, double luck because I managed to buy tickets for La Sagrada Familia and Parc Güell the day before! It also helped that we departed from the hotel at 9am before went separate ways.
While waiting for my allocated time to enter Gaudi’s masterpiece, I had a cookie dough milkshake. I just had my breakfast but a cold drink on a hot summer day was too tempting.
I felt so grateful that I made the decision because my next meal would be at 6.30pm 👀
La Sagrada Familia — Admiring Gaudi’s Masterpiece
I think many of you already know about this place. The outstanding, super unique church was started in 1882 by Fransisco de Paula del Villar.
When he resigned, Antoni Gaudí took over the construction. That’s when the magic started. Thanks to him, we can admire the Gothic and Art Nouveau-style Roman Catholic church!
I zoomed my camera so I could capture the details of the design. When in La Sagrada Familia, forget about taking the perfect shot. The place will always be crowded, so it’s better if you stay in the present and pay attention to the design ❤️
I took my time to admire the ceilings, windows, quirky pillars, everything. My favourite area was the painted glass windows, especially when the sun shone brightly, making the area looked like a magic forest.
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‘Skimming’ The Picasso Museum, Barcelona
I guess I spent too much time (but not sorry) in La Sagrada Familia. I still had a few hours before I could enter Parc Güell, so I decided to skip lunch to visit the Picasso Museum.
But before that, I made a random stop in a nice hotel to cool down and re-apply my sunblock. Just keep walking straight, don’t look confused… you’ll see the toilet.
And if you don’t, take the stairs until you meet someone whom you can ask for direction 😁
I called a taxi because there was no direct train from the train station to the museum, plus to save time. I’m happy I didn’t travel on a shoe-string budget.
Taking taxis when travelling instead of trains or walking felt so good and comfortable, especially in the summer🌬️😌
The traffic jam was quite bad. By the time I reached the museum and got my ticket (bought on the spot), I had less than an hour to explore the place 😓
I even extended the time, crossing my fingers that the staff in Parc Güell would let me in although late. I wish I could stay longer in the museum…
But that’s ok. I couldn’t afford to add another night in Barcelona else it would affect my future trips’ budget.
At least I got a mug that I loved… or not. When I went to the toilet after lunch cum dinner, I dropped the shopping bag. There goes my artistic, €17 tea mug 😭😭😭
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Parc Güell y La Rambla: Caliente. Caliente. CALIENTE.
It was a hot, hot, HOT day in Barcelona 🥵🥵🥵
Before I went to Parc Güell, I always thought that it was a field with wavy chairs decorated with colourful mosaic tiles, designed by Gaudi.
Wow, I was totally wrong! Parc Güell was as MASSIVE as an amusement park… No, it was like exploring a castle in a fairy tale.
It wouldn’t be a problem if I wasn’t alone and the weather was friendly. But I came alone, the place was so big, and they put a limit on how many people can visit the place in a day.
So, sometimes, there would be nobody in front or behind me. At that time, I was like, “Okay… where does this road take me? When will I see the wavy mosaic walls that I saw online? Am I there yet?”
Luckily, when I was about to reach the place, I met a woman and a couple. We talked and decided to turn left, roughly had the idea what the Spanish map showed us. Aaand, we were right!! 🎉🎉🎉
I was so happy! I just want to admire the place and art for a while, take some photos, and get out. If only the place was surrounded by trees, I could sit for a while and cool myself down…
But as you can see, even sitting there would make your a$$ feel hot 🙊
As if the park designer knew that people would want to go out once they visitted the main attraction, the exit was located nearby. I quickly went to the toilet to fill my water bottle and drank a lot of water to keep my hydrated.
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From the exit, you can take a bus that would take you to the city center. Just tell the driver that you want to take the train. The train station is very near to the bus stop ❤️
Where to, next? I stopped at La Rambla to have lunch cum dinner. It was a very late meal but strangely, I didn’t feel hungry at all. The power of Ben & Jerry’s milkshake!! ✨💪
After that, I returned to the hotel to cool down and take a bath before returning to La Rambla to meet Aaron, Radha, and her mother. They had dinner while watching a flamenco show in La Rambla.
I reached there just in time, then we headed to a bar. What an active, tiring, happy day to end the tour! Muchas gracias, Barcelona, you were amazing!
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Alright friends, what do you think? Would it be too rushing for you?
By the way, I will be on holiday until the end of October, so there will be no updates for three weeks. Take care and see you again! 😊✈️
